Jay Park

Jay Park (Korean name: Park Jae-beom, Hangul: 박재범, Hanja: 朴載範; born April 25, 1987) is an American singer, dancer, rapper, music producer, songwriter, model, choreographer, entrepreneur, and actor. He is a member of the Seattle-based b-boy crew, Art of Movement (AOM). As Park grew up as a b-boy and dancer, he has become known for these skills, as well as his charismatic performances and stage presence. Park was described as a "born entertainer" by legendary Korean pop singer Patti Kim, and The New York Times quoted the president of digital music distributor DFSB Kollective describing Park as "not just an artist, but also his own PR agent, fan club president, and TV network." Park also branched out into entrepreneurship, where he became the founder and co-CEO of AOMG, a Korean independent record label specializing in hip hop.

Park initially rose to fame as the leader of South Korean boy band 2PM, formed by record label JYP Entertainment in 2008, after having previously been a trainee for four years. In September 2009, Park returned home to Seattle after comments he wrote about Korea in 2005 as a teenager were publicized by the Korean media; Park officially left the group in early 2010. In March 2010, Park uploaded a cover video of B.o.B's hit "Nothin' on You", with his own rap and lyrics, to YouTube, which went viral and reached over 2,000,000 views in less than 24 hours, leading to the release of Park's first EP, Count on Me (Korean: 믿어줄래; Revised Romanization: Mideojullae) in July 2010, which debuted at number one on the Gaon chart. Park returned to South Korea in June 2010 for the filming of Hype Nation, while being represented by Digital Media Wire's CEO and entertainment attorney Ned Sherman, and in July 2010, Park signed a contract with SidusHQ, one of the largest agencies in South Korea, re-debuting as a solo singer and an actor.